Olajide Omokore has denied buying cars and houses for a former oil minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, and other Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) officials.
The businessman, who is reported to be an ally of Alison-Madueke, denied this Tuesday while testifying at his trial on charges of money laundering and procurement fraud in the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Omokore, who maintains that his relationship with Alison-Madueke was only official, denied buying houses for the former minister.
Ms. Alison-Madueke, who fled the country shortly after stepping down as oil minister in May 2015, also has corruption charges pending against her in the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting him and his co-defendants on nine counts of criminally diverting approximately $1.6 billion in petroleum products from the federal government.
An EFCC operative
Mr. Omokore and his co-defendants face allegations of clandestine dealings in connection with the existing Strategic Alliance Agreement (SAA) between their firms and the NNPC in OMLs 26, 30, 34 and 42.
He is on trial along with two of his companies, Atlantic Energy Brass Development Limited and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Limited, among others.
The other co-defendants include the former managing director of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Victor Briggs.
The rest are, a former Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Abiye Membere; and a former Planning and Commercial Manager of the NNPC, David Mbanefo.
EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren said in a press release on Wednesday that Mr. Omokore opened his defense by testifying as the defense’s first witness (DW1) on Tuesday.
denials
Presented by his lawyer, Rafiu Lawal-Rabana, a Senior Advocate for Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Omokore told the court that allegations that he bought houses for Ms. Alison-Madueke, a former oil resources minister, and cars for NNPC officials, and politicians were fake.
NNPC
The defense attorney specifically asked Mr. Omokore if he and his firms “handed over” a penthouse located as House 22 and 21 in Admiralty, Ikoyi and Belevista Estate in Ikoyi, was it true.
In response, Mr. Omokore said: “My answer is simple. There was not any of that. I didn’t do any of that. There is no document about it. I didn’t give anything to Diezani as he claims.
“There is nothing between the minister and myself that was more than official. I did not conspire with anyone. He had a facility of around $100 million (dollars) in Florida. Even here, the generators that I am using in my office, two of them, First Bank gave me as one of their best clients. So how can anyone say that I defrauded the government? For what?”
‘NNPC official got me cars’
He also stated that he did not buy cars for any NNPC officials.
“Buying cars is part of my philanthropic gesture. I buy cars for people, churches, NGOs and my friends,” Omokere said, but was quick to add: “I never gave any car to Mbanefo (co-defendant and former NNPC official).”
He added: “I gave a car to the King of Obosi, who is my friend, and it turns out that Mbanefo is from Obosi. I am the Enyimba of Obosi and to this day I go to the palace for meetings. My company is a very big company and I gave them instructions that I wanted to give a car to my friend, the king of Obosi for the title of chieftain he conferred on me.
“The management of my company gave the car to Kabiyesi. He was in the newspapers. The local Anambra television broadcast it. Mbanefo is from Obosi and we met at the palace. The company gave the car to Mbanefo to give to the Igwe.”
When asked if it was true that he also gave a car as a gift to Abiye Membere (fifth accused), the witness replied in the affirmative, but added that the gift had nothing to do with the Strategic Alliance Agreement (SAA) between his company and the NNPC. . He said the gift was more for Mbanefo’s 50th birthday.
“Engr Membere has been my friend for a long time, even when I was at Exxon Mobil. Our relationship goes back years. I went to his town three weeks ago for his mother’s funeral. About 10 years ago he buried someone and I was there. We are friends of the family. He buys me gifts and perfumes.
ExxonMobil used to illustrate the story
“I gave him the car for his birthday. I did it for her birthday, which was a milestone, her 50th birthday. Membere didn’t even know we were giving her a car. It was a surprise.
“It has nothing to do with the SAA. I never met him at the SAA. I met with the DMD. It had nothing to do with the SAA. It was after having signed the SAA that his 50th birthday arrived”.
Cross-examination by attorneys for co-defendants
Mr. Omokore was questioned by the lawyer representing his two firms, Atlantic Energy Brass Development Ltd and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concept Limited (the second and third accused respectively), Adeniyi Adegbonmire, SAN.
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Responding to questions from the attorney, Omokore said that he and his Atlantic Energy delivered “over 100 cars to different people” before the SAA was signed.
When asked if he knew Kola Aluko as one of the directing minds of Atlantic Energy Drilling Concept, he answered in the affirmative.
kola aluko
Also when asked if Mr. Aluko could give instructions to the company without asking or clarifying, the witness replied: “yes, he was the managing director”.
The lawyer for the fourth defendant, Olaniran Obele, asked Mr. Omokore if he gave a car to the fourth defendant, Briggs. “No, I didn’t,” replied Mr. Omokore, adding that it was not true that he gave a car to Mrs. Nneka Briggs, the wife of the fourth defendant.
Prosecution cross-examination
Prosecution attorney Rotimi Jacobs, also a SAN, questioned Mr. Omokore earlier in the proceedings.
In response to a question as to whether he was one of the directors and shareholders of the Atlantic Energy Drilling Company, M Omokore said “yes”, but added that he did not specifically recall the percentage of his shares in the company.
The judge, Nnamdi Dimgba, adjourned until Thursday to continue cross-examination.